Chapter 32 The Crash Landing

A helicopter was waiting for us.
Four soldiers volunteered to assist us. One of them is the pilot. Aside from the helicopter. Two armored mobiles will accompany us and till travel on land for extra precaution. I wonder if it's safe to travel by air. I think it could attract too much attention but Col. Morgan said it's the fastest way and we have to get into Zone twenty-eight as soon as we can.
The two of the shoulders helped us one by one to get into the military helicopter as the pilot and Col. Morgan readied the engine. When the propellers started spinning, the others and I were aghast to see the roof of the hangar open like a gigantic window, giving way to the aircraft to take off. Jayson and the others cheered as we slowly lifted towards the sky. All of us have a wide smile on our faces, feeling thrilled and looking obvious that it's their first time too to experience being in a helicopter. Well, I doubt Timothy. His family must have hundreds of private helicopters to get to wherever he wants to go.
A strange feeling of nausea overwhelmed me when the helicopter started soaring high up the ground. My hair tickled my face as the wind went wild against us. I lean a little closer to the door and watched the city go smaller under us. The sound of the machine was deafening and but the adrenaline in my veins made me enjoy the experience. Li's smile on his face didn't fade until we saw a horde of Creepers running towards us, shaken by the sound the helicopter was making in the air.
Mona closed her ears with her trembling hands, her eyes tightly shut upon hearing the terrifying screams and howls of the Creepers running behind us. Tim and Jayson glanced at me as if concerned about how the sound was affecting me but I feel like I am growing used to it. Creepers are nothing against a hostile human craving for bloodlust.
The sun was going down and its red-orange color was already stretching to the sky. The thin clouds looked like spooky ghosts to me, chasing us as we soar high up to it. It was getting dark and we had to hurry until we reached bunker twenty-three. It would be really dangerous to land in the city so the crew decided that the mountainside on that Zone was the safest place. Col. Morgan had already radioed his subordinates on the two armored mobiles. He confirmed the location to them and everything is all set.
Yes. I am talking about Cdr. Leo. May he have reached the gates of hell at this moment.
"How long does it take to reach Zone twenty-three?" Jayson asked Col. Morgan.
"It might take five hours. It depends," Col. Morgan answered, flicking switches on the panel board of the helicopter.
"It's a long journey down there and the armored cars will have to take a different route where there are fewer Creepers. It's a great hassle if any of the rebels appear in our way before we even get to our destination." Timothy interjected while gazing down past the buildings.
"Don't jinx us, Tim." I raised one eyebrow at him and he winked at me as he smiled.
I saw Jayson roll his eyes at Timothy, looking a bit moody.
Sometimes, it makes me want to assume that Jayson's jealous when Timothy keeps on flirting with me but I don't want to give color to whatever he feels about me. I might regret investing feelings in any of them if I keep on enjoying this.
My head suddenly felt dizzy and I closed my eyes. Yup, I remember I didn't get proper sleep last night, and the nightmares that kept on visiting me become too often that sometimes, I get scared to open my eyes knowing I'll see those horrifying scenes that were torturing my head.
"Are you ok, Harriet? You can try and get a short nap. I'll wake you up." Jayson suggested when he saw the sudden drooping of my eyelids. I didn't know I was that obvious of looking tired but I guess Jayson's right.
While we can't do anything up here in the helicopter, maybe I'll just grab the chance to take more sleep. Five hours is too long to just stare at the depressing surroundings towards Zone twenty-three. We could see the thousands of victims of the virus from up here, all were still running behind us, arms stretched upward.
"Fine. I guess I'll try and take a nap.
"You can lean your head on my shoulder." Jayson offered and I automatically looked at his eyes. His expression was so gentle and full of concern and it will be more comfortable for me if I'll take his offer. But then I caught Tim looking at us on the edge of his eyes so I just pat Jayson on his arms.
"I"m good. I can sleep and just hug my rucksack." I reasoned out. It's too obvious that the two of them are somewhat competing over something and if it's about my attention, well I guess I never want to be part of their silly games.
Jayson just smiled, looking disappointed. I admire Jayson. Yes, but it's still not enough reason to let our small group turn into distress just because they're acting silly towards me.
My body is supported by seatbelts and I just tied my bag on my waist so it won't accidentally plummet from the aircraft. I rested my forehead on the bag and closed my eyes again. I could feel I'm slowly drifting into sleep and everything went black-out of exhaustion.
***
A distress alarm alerted all my senses and my eyes caught the red light inside the helipad, a sign that there was malfunctioning at the engine. I felt strong hands shaking my shoulders and it was Jayson, whose face was wary and in full alert, looking directly down the helicopter.
It was dark already and the only light I could see is the red one flashing in front of us.
"W-what's happening?" I asked in panic and confusion as I sat straight on my seat. Sharp stabbing pain in my back and neck made me groan. How many hours did I sleep?
"WE GOT FIRED FROM BELOW!" Li answered me, his chinky eyes were wide with fear that made me feel nervous. When his expression's like that, it means we are in a really bad situation. He was checking Mona's seatbelt if it was securely attached to her.
What?!
"We need an emergency landing!" the pilot yelled in the middle of the creaking and clunking noise of metal and the loud sputtering of the engine.
I can't believe how exhausted I was to fall asleep like a log when we got attacked by the rebels. Were we shot by guns? I thought the pilot went to a safe route?!
"You need to buckle up tightly!" Jayson's expression was daunting. His set of green eyes was on the alert of what will happen next.
My eyes can't focus on what is happening around us. My mind was still in a haze from the sudden shock of waking up confused and agitated. I could even feel the discomfort on my arms and hands, thinking that the pain relievers I had taken had already worn off.
I feel terrified of the fact that we have to do an emergency landing in this place so dark we couldn't recognize the whole terrain. We have no idea if we will survive this crash landing. Then I thought if we'll live after this, what if there'll be Creepers wandering around the area? Or if there aren't hungry Creepers around this place, what if there are rebels waiting for us down there?
Being skeptical won't help you, Harriet!
The aircraft had started plummeting violently straight on a flat terrain below us. I can't do anything but shut my eyes and hold tightly on the safety belt of my seat. When I opened my eyes slightly to see what was going on, I saw Jayson's face in front of me, his green eyes showing assurance that he'll protect me no matter what happens. The feeling of terror in our eyes were so intense that I feel like I'm going to accept death again for the fourth time.
Jayson shielded me with his body as the helicopter lost its balance and started spinning down the unknown area. We all screamed as the loud explosion on the back of the aircraft broke the silence of the night. Jayson held me tightly. He made me bury my head on his chest to protect me from banging my head from any part of the helipad in case we crashed into a bumpy surface.
Adrenaline rushed through my veins and my ears felt almost deaf from the loud beating of my heart. Oh, heavens! Please let us survive this! Don't let any of my friends get hurt! I beg you!
We all scrambled inside the pad when the aircraft made its first, violent bump in the ground. I felt like my brain had shaken inside my skull because of the powerful impact we experience. There were loud banging noises of metal to metal and sparkling sounds of overheating machines. The second bump made me almost lose my consciousness.